10 Reasons For Fergie To Go
Article by The Editor
1) Lack of success
(And boy does it taste bad!). Let's face it the last five years have been a disaster - third, first, third, third, .... ? One FA Cup and embarrassing failure after embarrassing failure in Europe. And let's be honest about it, United's win in the Premiership in 2003 was more to do with the Arsenal team choking than any great football from United. The European Cup has been even worse - since victory in 1999 United haven't even looked like winning the tournament again. One semi-final and that is it. Simply not good enough. In fact it's a record that would have got any other United manager sacked.; Ron Atkinson did better in his five years at the club for example. But Fergie has been trading on the past all this time. Indeed many fans still hark back to his record - fantastic as it is. He IS United's most successful ever manager but that was achieved between 1992 and 2000. Nothing done since has added to his legacy in any meaningful way. It's just no good living in the past.
2) Failure to replace Keane
It's not as if Fergie hasn't had some warning - as each year has gone by, Keane has become a year older. It's biology 101 Fergie! Not only older but more fragile, more prone to injury, more frustrated with Fergoz' bizare tactics... it led to the great Irishman's eventual departure. Fergie did experiment of course - Pip Neville, Quinton Fortune, John O'Shea and now Alan Smith have all been shoe-horned into the defensive midfield position. None of them fundamentally understood how to play it. How could they, none are defensive midfielders! It's about more than running around, kicking whoever comes your way first. Fergie could have signed a top class defensive midfielder but he didn't. Instead he tried to do it on the cheap - Djemba-Djemba, Kleberson, Liam Miller - or spunked the money elsewhere, neglecting a real desperate need.
3) Falling out with key players
Jaap Stam should have been the heart of the Manchester United defence for years. He's been a rock at Lazio and now Milan. Instead for one minor indiscretion - a line in a book about meeting Fergie before his transfer from PSV Eindhoven - Jip Jaap Staam was cast aside., sold on to Lazio for a fee the Italian club never paid. It's not as if he'd ever been a trouble maker or anything less than totally professional. Jaap's replacement, Lauren Blanc, was a disaster. As good as Lauren was at reading the game he was so slow even average players had to measure of him. Then there was David Beckham - the world's best crossed. The man who provided in Ruud's own words, "4 or 5 chances every game." Yes, Beckham was rubbish in his final season at United. Yes, he was getting deeper and deeper into the celebrity lifestyle that was becoming an embarrassment to the club. And yes, United got a decent fee in a depressed market. But Beckham has never been replaced, not really. And Ruud van Nistelrooy has never been the same since.
4) Bringing back Quieroz / 4-5-1
He thinks the fans are "stupid" and he's the single biggest reason that United have betrayed their attacking traditions - moving from 4-4-2, with wingers, goals and flair to the hated, dour, defensive, insipid, boring-as-**** 4-5-1 formation that insults the intelligence of the fans. Quieroz has taken over training, tactics and analysis. He doles out the information on matchday and takes the team-talks at half-time. So influential has the Mozambiqian-Portuguese coach become that it's almost as if Fergie has morphed with Quieroz - the dreaded "Fergoz." Perhaps if 4-5-1 had worked the fans would have accepted it but it hasn't. Ever. United haven't won a trophy playing that way and aren't like to either. You have to score GOALS to win matched and United just haven't been doing that that often enough. Yes, perhaps the 4-4-2 has returned. Sort of. Although all too often United's wingers are far too central. How many croses do they actually put it - it can't be many. The fact is, even with 4-4-2 United think safety first - all-the-time, everytime.
5) Postponing retirement
Let's be honest it was a terrible decision not just for the club but for Ferguson personally. They say that all managers end in failure but it didn't have to be that way. Sure United had finished third in 2002 when Fergie had originally planned to step down. Perhaps he didn't want to end without a trophy. But he'd already booked his place in United history, he couldn't possibly have achieved any more at the club. In returning Ferguson has opened himself up to exactly the kind of criticism he is receiving now.
6) Transfer market misery
The Past:
Bruce
Pallister
Schmeichel
Irwin
Cantona
Kanchelskis
The present:
Forlan
Bellion
Djemba-Djemba
Kleberson
Miller
Veron
Blanc
Ferdinand
Case closed.
7) Supporting Malcolm Glazer
Once upon a time in the Ferguson household Marx' rules applied. You joined a union, you gave to charity, you looked after your own. Then Ferguson got rich, he got lazy, he joined New Labour, he forgot about his roots. Worse still he forgot about the fans. Once upon a time Fergie said that American ownership would be bad, that "we don't need anybody else in the club." Then the Americans took over and Fergie changed his tuned. Shop steward Fergie crawled back into his hole and "look-after-your-own-arse" Fergie slithered his way out. Admonishing the demonstrating fans and demanding the Glazers be given a chance. A ******* disgrace Fergie.
8) Insulting the fans
Red: You've ****ed us over big time there Gill. I can't believe you've sold us out.
Gill: (looks perplexed, doesn't know what to say. Enter Fergie)
Red: You've ****ed us over too, you could've spoken out about it.
Fergie: I've got close mates who've been working with me here for 15 years. They come first in all this.
Red: So don't the fans come first?
Fergie: Well I suppose they do come somewhere.
Red: You what? That's well out of order.
Fergie: Well if you don't like it go and watch Chelsea.
Red: The fans have been screwed right over. It costs me £20-odd a game now as it is.
Fergie: It costs more than that at Chelsea, go and watch them.
[Red storms off, and spots Ferdinand: "Oi you greedy ****, how you spending your pay rise?"]
Perhaps you can go watch Chelsea, Fergie. With your P45 in hand.
9) Darren "He's my love child" Fletcher
Alex Ferguson must be sleeping with Darren Fletcher. Either that or he's banging the boy's mother. It's the only plausible explanation for the young Scott getting in the team ahead of Ronaldo, Giggs and Park - almost all the time. RANT doesn't like to slag off Fletcher for the sake of it. The boy has had some decent games in the middle of the park, but he's just terrible as a winger. No pace, no goals, no crosses, no creativity. What the **** Fergie?
10) Dignity
The last but most important reason for Fergie to go is his own personal dignity. Don't let your reputation slide any further. Be remember as the legend that your are. More seasons of failure, of insipid, lack-lustre, uninspired, unimaginative and passionless football and the fans will turn on you Alex. We're so grateful for everything that you've done - from knocking Liverpool "off their ******* perch" to that wonderful night in Barcelona five and a half years ago. But your record over the last four and a half seasons just isn't good enough and RANT for one doesn't believe it's about to get any better. We love you Fergie, for your own sake please just go now.
UnitedRant 
